Detonation: Universe Scratch
by Ronalee Mirykle
Summary: John, Dave and Rose are all travelers heading to Alternia on the midnight portal with their Space assistant Jade when the portal explodes, sending them into a flurry of confusing events. Assisted with thousands of new friends, they head out to save their universe, somehow named Scratch, from a villain they've only heard about, at the same time falling in love.
1. Chapter 1

The Wind Kingdom, in the dusty Southern parts of planet Earth, consisted of little more than an open dusty field and one giant round stone building. In the years the Kingdom had existed, less than fifty people actually lived there, and so the round building had sufficed. The center of the building was a courtyard big enough for a five-stall market, and most common people lived on the first three floors, the top floor reserved for guests of honor, the wise advisors of the Wind Kingdom, and of course, the King and his only son, John Egbert.

It was clear John was a worthy Heir when he caused a massive dust tornado to sweep across the plains at age five. Because his grandmother had been a Life-Healer, not a Wind-Master, there had been some doubt. Now, at age thirteen, John was the buzz of town, with large square-rimmed glasses and short tousled black hair like his grandmother. He was tall and strong, though slightly lanky, and held a messy set of buck teeth.

John loved to play pranks.

The servants had learned to check the doors for waiting buckets of water and to avoid any 'gifts' John had left for them. The King, John's father, was also subject to many of these jokes. He didn't mind, though, and chuckled at a couple of strategically placed pranks. He had long ago grown to old to prank people himself and was proud of John's achievements.

However, now John waited outside the dimly lit round building for his cousin in the nearby Kingdom of Life. The King had suddenly fallen ill, and John becoming King was very possible soon. As much as the advisors in the Kingdom knew, John knew there was more to know about the Wind Element out there and so he had contacted a friend on the planet Alternia. His friend knew of a troll on Alternia that was a Wind-Master, but couldn't travel to Earth because of a condition he had. John instead decided to travel to Alternia, though he had never stepped a foot outside the Wind Kingdom. His cousin, Jane, was taking John to a nearby portal station that could take them to Alternia. Hopefully all would work out.

Little did John know that future events would turn his fates around.


	2. Chapter 2

**Note: I apologize for the first chapter, I'm not very good at starting stories. I promise I'm trying to make this better. Someone asked which ships I had in mind and all I will say is: Read on to find out! Although actual shippings won't show up for a couple of chapters (there are hints here and there). I'm sorry!**

"Welcome to the Midnight Cat! What is it you wish to seek?"

Rose Lalonde, a petite fourteen-year-old girl with short blonde hair and black lipstick, smiled at the well-kept man in front of her, her new client. Running a fortune-telling business was tricky and audiences were sometimes limited for her. Rose traveled around Earth with a small 'Wonder-Festival' of experienced Element-Masters and Wonder-Workers. In this time, nothing they showed was fake. Magic was real in every way. So were Rose's fortunes. Rose was a rare girl with two powers instead of one. She was a Future-Worker and a Light-Master, one who could both see the future and work with light elements including fire. The only other people she knew that had double powers were her two brothers.

The man in front of her, though, seemed to be a common No-Power, one who could handle business and politics but not flying or setting things on fire. Most of her clients were like that. It was the reason they came to her. This client was looking for advice on his company, a simple task, but Rose didn't mind. She knew that it would be a busy day filled with many gifts.

After saying goodbye to her last client (A girl who was having boy problems), Rose closed up shop and set about cleaning up. A young man, dressed in the blue and yellow uniform of the Wonder-Festival, entered her tent quietly. Rose looked up and smiled.

"Hello. Is there something I can help you with?" She asked as she took off the purple knit headband she wore. Some of her things, especially clothes for traveling through the Winter Lands of the North, she had knit herself and so was this headband.

"The Ringmaster would like to see you." The man told Rose as she placed the headband on a table. Rose frowned. The Ringmaster never called for anyone. Not ever. He always came to find people himself.

"I shall be there in a moment." Rose told the man, and he nodded and slipped back out. Rose took one final glance around her tent and followed him out.

The Ringmaster was a small man. Thin and short, he was incredibly cheerful and wise, always having a positive outlook on life. He had a thick moustache that was brown with streaks of grey, giving away how old he was, and deep blue eyes that twinkled with happiness. Like Rose, he was a Light-Master, and loved watching people happy and together. Most of his Wonder-Festival was made up of Light-Masters, and he treated all of them like his grandchildren.

The Ringmaster lived in a wooden caravan on the edge of the Festival. It was painted blue and yellow and was made to look like a sky. Inside was a low wooden table, also blue, with several chairs around it. Off to one corner was a bed and some drawers. The walls held little crevices and candle holders, all with candles of every shape and size imagineable, casting a glow about the room.

When Rose entered the caravan, the Ringmaster was sitting at the table. He was hunched over, looking frail and weak. The candles, once bright, were flickering ghosts of what they were. As soon as the Ringmaster noticed Rose, he straightened up and the candles once more cast a healthy glow in the room.

"My darling Rose!" He exclaimed, then coughed a bit. "Come, come have a seat." He beckoned Rose over to an empty chair, and she complied.

"Is everything all right, Ringmaster?" Rose asked, her brow creasing. The Ringmaster waved his hand as if shooing off a fly, then looked a bit sheepish.

"Well, actually, I wanted to tell you something a bit important. You see, I just got a letter from Alternia." He picked up a jade green letter from a pile on the table. "I am getting older, and the Wonder-Festival is becoming smaller and smaller nowadays."

Rose started to protest, but the Ringmaster cut her off. "Don't deny this, child. Many of our shows have left, willingly. The crowds are thinning out. Soon we'll have to shut down. I don't want you to be there when it happens. It pains me to think of you without a place to stay or a job to aid you. Now, I have a friend in Alternia. She's a Space-Master troll and is willing to help us. I've asked her for a favor, you can stay with her and find a new place to work. We've always stuck to Earth, Alternia will be new audiences for you."

He paused for a moment, and Rose could now clearly see the pain in his eyes. He loved this Festival, she knew that. "I hate to see this place on the brink of disappearance. But I'll go. I understand." She told him.

The Ringmaster chuckled. "Ach, don't make me feel worse." Rose smiled at him.

"Where is it I am headed?" She asked. The Ringmaster glanced at the letter.

"I got you a ticket for Alternia at a nearby portal station. It leaves tomorrow at midnight. Rose," He smiled at her again. "We will all miss you."

"This place will always be remembered." Rose replied. "And so will you. I will miss you too, Ringmaster."


	3. Chapter 3

**Note: This is super short, it's just two notes, sent between Aradia Megido and Dave Strider. Since they're both Time-Masters, I decided they've become pen pals. It kinda makes sense? Oh, and of course Dave knows who Terezi Pyrope is.**

Aradia,

My brother kicked me out of the house. He told me I needed to train myself. Is it alright if I stay with you to train? Either way, I'm leaving for Alternia tomorrow night and arriving at 3:00 in the morning. I guess not many people travel to Alternia, because it was the only portal open for the next month or so. I don't mean to be a burden, but I got in contact with my friend John and he's heading in the same direction.

Sorry,

Dave

Dave,

I'm glad you wrote! Of course it's no problem, my life is a bore here. I'll wait at the local Alternian station for you. Is there any way I could meet John? I think you told me about him, the heir to the Wind Kingdom, correct? Please be careful at those night stations, I've heard that there's some suspicious stuff going on and Terezi's been ranting about it lately. But you're a knight, so you should be able to take care of yourself!

See you soon!

Aradia


	4. Chapter 4

**Note: I really wanted more dialogue, so here is a stupid random tiny conversation between Jade and Dave! This chapter's really long because everything happens in it. Also, I apologize so much for the crappy writing! And for the super late update today. I was really tired T.T**

Scratch Station has five portals heading to twenty-one locations in the universe and beyond. It's fashioned in one open room with giant television screens indicating which portals were heading where. The portal itself was a giant grey pad, big enough for nine people to stand on it. The design on the base was called a fractal, similar to the short-distance transportalizers that were used in houses. Guardians, the people that worked at portal stations, would be milling around the portals or at desks, helping people in any way. It wasn't unlike a hectic train station.

Jade Harley was the youngest guardian at Scratch Station. Recruited at 10, the now-14-year-old Space-Master had long black hair with bangs and a pair of huge round glasses she used to see. Her green eyes sparkled with curiosity and the knowledge that she knew something others didn't. And sometimes she did, though she would never tell how.

Jade sighed at the stiff black-and-white uniform she was required to wear. Scratch Station, in it's effort to maintain their title of 'good host', recently required a formal uniform so that Guardians would be easier to spot. For Jade, it was the most uncomortable thing in the world. They wouldn't even let her wear her favorite comfortable red shoes!

Shrugging it off, she directed her attention back to the empty station. The only portal open was the one heading to Alternia. As far as she knew, there were only four people waiting for it. Jade spotted two young people in unidentifiable sandy brown cloaks, one boy and one girl. She could only make out the glint of two pairs of glasses under the hoods before the shadows of the hood confined the owner's face. Next to them was a gypsy, dressed in purple and white, calmly knitting. Across from the three of them was a blonde boy in a red cloak that appeared to be sleeping. Jade couldn't tell with those aviator shades in the way.

All of a sudden, the boy stirred, shifted and caught Jade's eye. Jade quickly looked away and busied herself at her desk. She could hear his footsteps approaching and willed herself not to look up. The footsteps paused and something leaned on her desk. Jade dared herself to look up. Sure enough, there was the boy. She straightened, banged her head on the low-hanging lamp, and stood up again. The corner of the boy's mouth lifted up a bit.

"So..." He drawled out. "You the only guardian on-duty here?" This question struck Jade as odd. It was painfully obvious that no one else was here except for the four travelers and her.

"Um, yes?" Jade answered, cocking her head to one side in confusion. The boy stared at her for a bit before smirking again.

"Sup. My name's Dave." Somehow Dave's cool act made Jade want to laugh. So she did.

"Well, hello Dave! I'm Jade. Now, there's nothing you really need, is there?" Jade smiled. Knowing something like that left others in confusion, but Dave just smirked again.

"Naw, it's just really boring here." He replied, standing up himself. Jade, sensing that he wasn't going anytime soon, leaned back over her desk and continued to sort through papers.

"I think it's kind of peaceful. Today was kind of a train wreck since Portal 4 wasn't working." She replied, pausing at a paper covered in red pen and sighing.

"You could say that. I kind of miss having to run around, though. That's the whole reason why I'm leaving, you know." Dave jerked his head at the portal. "To get back into things."

"Oh? Really?" Jade frowned at a paper, holding it up.

"Yup." Dave glanced at Jade again, obviously distracted. He smirked, then left to go sit down again. Jade grinned a bit. Dave was pretty smart, and knew when to shut up. She glanced back down at the papers. Every month, a different person was assigned night duty, which also ment managing the month's bills. Jade hated the fact that Doc Scratch, the owner of the station, chose to believe he could get everything first class, which left his station in shambles. The Guardians had to pick up after his life of luxury. Often the Guardians lost a lot of their own money, but they bared through it. Jade glanced up at the clock. Ten minutes until she sent them off to... to...

She checked the grey piece of string wound around her left pinky finger. Alternia. Right. Carefully, she tidied up all the papers on her desk and tucked them into a green folder. Then she walked over to the four awaiting people.

"Hello! My name is Jade. In five mintes, you will be heading off to," Another glance at her hand. "Alternia. Will you please gather your luggage and hand me your tickets, and you'll be off shortly." Jade hated having to practice that speech but since Scratch Station's entire existence relied mostly on the fact that they were 'good hosts', she was forced to. In the end, it worked.

The last two people to get up were the ones in brown cloaks. The boy reached for a satchel in a similar shade of brown to his cloak, and Jade caught a glimpse of the blue sleeve of a Wind-Master's outfit underneath the cloak. The boy straightened again, leaving Jade to wonder wether she had actually seen it or if it was just a figment of her imagination. He handed her his ticket, and once again Jade caught a glimpse of square-rimmed glasses underneath his hood. She shrugged off the feeling that she's seen him before, after all she's seen thousands of travelers pass through here and he could've been one of them.

After they were all situated, Jade stepped up onto the portal with them and started explaining the procedure and what to do. She had barely begun when a loud buzzin sound came from the portal. She looked down and saw it glowing red. That wasn't good.

"Would you please get off now?" She asked, staring at the portal that was starting to go haywire. Jade looked up to find them already gone, which was a good sign. She ran over to the pulsating red wires, trying to tug them out, but for some reason they wouldn't give. She tried to remember Scration protocol, but she knew the thing was going to blow up any minute now so instead she pulled out a shield from time and space and covered herself and the travelers.

The portal exploded, and that's when her narcolepsy kicked in and Jade Harley fell asleep.


	5. Chapter 5

**Note: Yeah. It's been a while. I'm sorry, but I'm now writing as I go, before I had pre-written stuff so. Yeah. Also, be prepared for super surprises in the next few chapters!**

Bits and pieces of metal fell everywhere as the four strangers now huddled together under the giant shield that appeared out of nowhere from their Space Guardian. Dave took this moment to speak up.

"So. Um, hi my name's Dave." He instantly regretted that as the three people he stood with turned to him. The boy in the brown cloak pushed back his hood, revealing-

"Dave! I thought it was you!" The boy with giant familiar blue eyes grinned at Dave.

"Holy shi- John?!" Dave spluttered. John laughed at Dave's surprisment. "Dude, I knew you were going to Alternia, but Scratch Station? The midnight portal? Holy shit, dude!"

The girl with the brown cloak pulled her hood back. "Um, hi guys, I'm John's cousin Jane." The girl bore a striking resemblance to John, her black hair was cropped short and her eyes were only a shade lighter blue. She also had glasses, though hers were oval-shaped.

The last girl smiled at them. "Well, hello Jane. I'm Dave's sister, Rose." Dave once again started spluttering, and John laughed and poked fun at him for 'losing his cool'. Dave retorted that this wasn't losing his cool, this was obviously something lodged in his throat, geez Egderp. Rose stuck her head outside the shield.

"I believe we can let go of this thing, the metal rain has stopped." She pushed shield off to one side, and they stood for a bit of an awkward silence before the Space Guardian woke up.

"Aaaaah! I'm so sorry guys I'm afraid that was comepletely out of line I promise it won't happen again now please remain calm I can try to fix this somehow and- John is that you?" John grinned down at his sister before pulling her up and into a hug. They all laughed, and would've continued if it weren't for another Space Guardian arriving to start her shift.

"Oh my- Jade! What happened?" Jade turned to the Guardian sheepishly. "Oh dear- we don't have a budget for another portal! What happened?"

"I honestly don't know." Jade replied. "The thing start glowing red and buzzing. I tried unplugging it, but it wasn't working. Then it exploded."

"Glowing red? A portal never does that!" The Guardian took another look at the bits and pieces before clucking her tongue and heading to the phone. She tapped her fingers as the phone rang, then when someone picked up, she began speaking again. "Hello, Scratch Station, portal 20543- yes. Yes, we appear to have a malfunctioning portal. Exploded, yes- what? Really? Yes, it was. Around midnight. Alright. Of course. Thank you." She hung up and looked at the five of them. "We're going to need the four travelers to stay here. Were you meeting someone on Alternia?"

All of them nodded. The Guardian turned to Jade to exchange a few brief words, then left with promises of food and some other things. Jade turned to the group. "So it seems you're gonna have to stay here. We have a team coming from Alternia to help us with this; they're part of the leading council on Alternia and they deal with interplanetary troubles. Unfortunately, protocol tells us to shut down all the portals. So, um..." She glanced down at her feet. "We can't, unfortunately, send you off to Alternia."


	6. Chapter 6

** Note: I'M SO SORRY GUYS I WAS AT CAMP WITH NO WIFI AND THEN WRITER'S BLOCK SO THE NEXT FEW CHAPTERS WILL KINDA BE FILLERS TO EXPLAIN WHAT THE HECK IS GOING ON! Other than that, nothing new to report! Keep on reading!**

The Space Guardian's name was Calliope. She had sparkling green eyes and white hair. She helped the travelers set up ten tents in an open space next to the wreckage. During the blast, the Station itself had been destroyed, but the travelers were too distracted to notice it at the time.

"It was lucky no one was hurt!" Calliope exclaimed as she carried a cot over. "With all the damage done to the building, not a single piece touched you!"

They told John he didn't have to stay, neither did Jane, but John insisted he stay and help out his sister and his best friends. Jane stayed to help the Heir prince. Dave messaged his older brother, and soon the eldest Strider showed up.

"Damn, bro, the first thing you do when you leave is blow up a fucking building." Dirk commented as he surveyed the Station. The other Lalonde sister, Roxy, also showed up.

"Roxy, I ask that you kindly refrain from drinking those alchoholic beverages in my presence." Rose said as she wrinkled her nose.

Roxy giggled. "Aw, c'mon Rosie! These things are the bomb!" Noticing Dirk and Jane, she squealed and ran over. As it turned out, Jane was a close friend of Dirk and Roxy. All three of them agreed to stay in case something else happened.

The tent arrangement ended up being Dave and John, Roxy and Jane, Jade and Rose, and Dirk with his own tent. Jade told them that their other cousin Jake was coming to room with Dirk. The last six tents remained empty.

"We have the Alternian Council coming to help us." Jade told them. "Since our treaty with them, they're the first responders to any situation here, and we are to them." She explained that that was the only reason a portal was to be opened in an emergency like this. They were arriving the next day, the same time Jake was arriving.

"There's a lot of people, are you sure this is okay?" John asked. "I don't want to impose on you guys."

"It's okay." Calliope assured him cheerfully. "The last emergency in a portal station, they housed five hundred people, and half were families that came to help out, like you guys are. Scratch Station is equipped to house over a thousand, so don't you fret."

That night, Calliope left to go to her apartment a block down from the station. She agreed to come back the next morning to check in with them, even though other Space Guardians would be there. Jade wanted to contact Doc Scratch, but Calliope told her that he wouldn't do anything. As usual, it was up to the Space Guardians to fix everything.

The next day might prove to be useful.


	7. Chapter 7

**Note: I'm sorry if I messed up anything about the trolls. But anyways, chapter 7! This was actually fun to write!**

Portal 2 was up and running by the time Rose had woken up. She peered outside to see John, Jade and Dave chatting by the running Portal, and a third boy she'd never seen before talking to Dirk. The boy had black hair and an almost unnoticeable tan. He wore square-rimmed glasses like John's. Rose knew this was Jake, Jade's cousin and Jane's brother. She stepped outside to greet them.

"Hey Rose! Calliope's waiting for the Council to arrive." John told her cheerfully. "Have you met Jake?"

"Hello! Jolly good to meet you!" Jake smiled, extending his hand. Rose smiled back, shaking his hand. All of a sudden, Calliope gave a shout.

"Guys! Here come the Council!" The group turned in time to see the portal hum, glow softly, and then in a blink, twelve cloaked figures appeared. Perhaps not the ones they were expecting.

"EVERYONE SHUT THE FUCK UP! THIS IS YOUR LEADER SPEAKING. I- oh." The short figure in the front pulled back his hood, revealing grey skin, yellow eyes, and two stumpy candy-corn horns protruding from a mass of chocolate brown hair. He seemed to glare at everyone. "Alright. We're here, nooksuckers. My name is Karkat, and I am the replacement for the Signless." His voice had a creak to it, like he had shouted too much.

"Replacement?" Calliope tsked. "We were told the Alternian Council was coming!" Karkat glared at her and opened his mouth when another troll nudged him aside.

"Karkat! Please don't be rude!" This troll pulled down her hood, and a mass of pink streaked hair toppled down. She had fins and goggles, but wore a thin gold headband. Her horns were curved outward, like a Pisces symbol. "I'm so sorry. My name is Feferi, by the way. I'm the replacement for the Condensation. Unfortunately, there's been more distressing matters on Alternia, so we were sent. I apologize for the mix-up."

Calliope just muttered angrily until John stepped up. "Well, there's no reason to mope, I guess. Having some backup is better than none, and if the Council is busy, we can respect that." John then smiled. "I don't believe we've introduced ourselves. I am John Egbert, the Heir to the Wind Kingdom. This is my sister Jade Harley, the Space Guardian on duty, my best bro Dave Strider, a Knight of the Time Kingdom, his sister Rose Lalonde, a Seer from the Light Kingdom, and..." He paused a minute. "I don't actually know the others, except for my cousin Jane Crocker, a Handmaiden from the Life Kingdom."

Feferi smiled. "Like I said, I am Feferi Peixes, the descendant or replacement of the Condensation. I, too, am a Life-Master, although I have not used my powers much. This grumpy troll here-" She nudged Karkat. "Is a Knight from Alternia's Blood Kingdom. He's the descendant of the Signless, my family's right hand man."

The rest of the trolls pulled back their hoods and introduced themselves, although Rose lost track quickly. One stood out in particular, a Space Guardian named Kanaya Maryam, the descendant of the Dolorosa. Rose though she sounded vaguely similar to the Space Guardian the Ringmaster was talking to. When they were finished introducing everyone, Rose walked over to Kanaya and offered to carry her bags.

"Greetings, Rose human." Kanaya smiled. "I wish this had not come up at such an unfortunate time, sorry to say. I was preparing for a guest to stay, a friend of a friend's. I am worried, though, because I have never met her, and so I could not tell her."

"I was sent to stay with a friend of a friend's." Rose informed her. "You must be the Ringmaster's Space troll friend."

"I am indeed!" Kanaya exclaimed. "You are the same Rose human from the Wonder-Festival?"

"Yes." Rose set down the bags she was carrying at the fifth tent. "It looks like you'll be staying with the one named Aradia Medigo."

"Aradia?" Kanaya smiled. "At least I can converse with her. Well... somewhat."

"What do you mean?" Rose asked.

"Aradia switches often between two different personalities. It's like life and death. Right now it's more of a 'death' phase."

"I see." Rose nodded. "Well, if you're an early riser, we could met for a cup of tea?"

"Of course. It was wonderful to meet you, Rose." Kanaya smiled again at her. "Have a good night."

"And you, too." Rose walked away, glad to have one person to converse easily with.


	8. Chapter 8

**Note: So… Um… I don't know if I have to say you are allowed to review or whatever, but you can… Also new perspectives: Sollux and Tavros! And yeah. I haven't been on in forever. Sorry?**

Sollux Captor was sitting by the portal when Feferi found him. He had messy black hair, longer in the front and sticking out in the back. Unlike other trolls, he had two sets of horns that poked out. He also had differently colored eyes, which he hid behind his 3-D type glasses.

"Hiya Sollux!" Feferi sang. "Have you moved in yet?" Feferi had ditched her cloak and stood in a pink tunic and darker colored leggings.

Sollux looked up. "Nah, I'm trying to wait for the latht pothible moment to move in." Feferi looked at him, concerned.

"I heard your roommate was Eridan." Sollux grimaced. "Oh, don't glub like that! You two have been fighting for the past two weeks and I think this will help you get past your differences." She gave him a gentle push. "Go on!"

Sollux sighed and gathered his bags. He walked down the line of boys' tents, until finding the one numbered 5. He pulled back the flap to see his roommate, Eridan Ampora, glaring at him from one of the beds.

"Hey fuckath." Sollux greeted him, blocking the oncoming pillow.

"Alright Captor, let's get this ovver wwith. Our stuff stays on our respectivve sides of this goddamn small tent. You and I can try to see the least amount of each other during this stay and not talk to each other. Got it?" Eridan was growling by now. He had one massive streak of purple in his dark brown hair and two wavy horns pointing backwards, like an Aquarius symbol. He insisted on tucking his blue striped scarf under his cloak. Sollux dumped his bags on the opposite beds before replying to the impatient Aquarius.

"I mithed you too, ED." Eridan's face turned a brilliant shade of purple and he launched another pillow at Sollux's back, caught in the air by Sollux's red and blue psiionics.

"Oh fuck you, Sol." Eridan huffed, before striding out of the tent. Sollux could barely contain his grin at Eridan's reaction before sighing and resting his hands on the red and blue bags in front of him.

This was going to be a troubling visit.

**(OK here have a line break I tried three times so whatever)**

Tavros Nitram was pushed in his wheelchair down the long path of boys's tents by his new roommate, Gamzee Makara. Although Gamzee laughed, Tavros was terrified.

"Ah! Gamzee, be careful of, uh other people!" Tavros called out. "And- ah! L-look out for those, uh, boxes!" Tavros had a mohawk of light brown hair with one thin streak of red, and two massive horns that stuck out and curved upwards a bit at each end. He was shy, and stuttered a lot. Gamzee, on the other hand, had long shaggy black hair with multiple purple streaks and two curvy horns that pointed upwards. He wore clown paint all the time and his eyes were half-shut from all the drugs he took. The two were complete opposites but good friends.

"Aw, motherfucker, don't worry. Look, we're almost motherfucking there." Once Gamzee said this, Tavros opened his eyes to see tent 4 in front of him. He breathed a sigh of relief. Gamzee pushed him inside gently and dropped their combined four bags on one of the cots.

"Uh, Gamzee, I can unpack my, uh, own bags." Tavros reached for his brown cloth bags, but Gamzee grabbed them instead.

"Naw, Tav-bro, I can do this. You must be all up and tired, huh? Let me." Tavros blinked and retracted his arm.

"Ok, um. I guess I'll, um, go and greet the, um, humans?" Gamzee nodded, already humming and unpacking things. Tavros sighed and wheeled outside, only to be greeted by one of the humans, a boy dressed in blue.

"Hi there! My name's John. You must be Tavros?" John greeted him. Tavros looked surprised, but nodded back. Then something clicked in his brain.

"You're the, uh, Heir to the, um, Wind Kingdom?" Tavros asked nervously. John nodded, grinning. "I am the, um, Wind-Master troll. I believe you were coming to, uh, train with me?"

John blinked. "Woah! That was you! But I thought you couldn't travel?"

"Only in, um, extreme emergencies." Tavros explained. "It's, uh, very hard and dangerous to travel in an, um, wheelchair."

"I see!" John nodded. "Well, what a cool coincidence! I mean, besides the fact that it was an explosion."

"That is true." Tavros smiled. John ticked his head to the side, then brightened.

"Hey! Why don't you join me and Dave? We're heading out to the store down the street to pick up what Dave calls 'civilized' food." John snickered. "Anyways, come join us!"

Tavros thought about his roommate inside, unpacking and oblivious. He thought of the various other trolls he could encounter here, some not very nice. Then he thought about the two humans he had never met inviting him to shop, and he made up his mind.

"Sure." Tavros said. "Why not?"


	9. Auto Message

This is an automated message from Ronalee Mirykle!

This message indicates that Rona is currently super busy and cannot work on this piece for a while. She apologizes that this is not a new chapter. In fact, she advises that you should do something fun while you wait!

The FIRST time you see this message: Write a review! Ronalee likes to read people's feedback, so please tell her what you liked or disliked about her story and she can make changes whenever possible!


	10. Chapter 9

**Note: Well. I have been extremely busy. School has started. A new story on fanfiction for my camp friends. And even more shenanigans going on with my friends. Have a new chapter before I forget to write a second new one!**

**Also thanks to Sil3ntghost for reviewing!**

Calliope was walking back to their tentsite when a limosuine pulled up.

"Oh god." She groaned, and ran up to the tents as a man stepped out and almost stepped back in in distaste. He was a clean-shaven older man with short-cropped white hair and a white suit. He carried a wooden cane and everything about him seemed straight and clean.

"Miss Calliope, why don't you keep better care of this place?" Doc Scratch asked, surveying the remains of the station.

"Maybe because a portal has blown up and destroyed the building and it was only yesterday, sir." Calliope folded her hands in her lap. "Clean-up takes weeks."

"Move it up to today." Doc Scratch walked distastefully into the campsite, stepping silently to the side as John, Dave and a troll in a wheelchair race past, John pushing the troll, who was screaming in fear. Calliope cheerfully waved to them as they sped down the street. "Pay for the damage and then reopen soon."

"What?!" Calliope whipped her head around to gape at the calm man. "Sir, we are far behind in taxes! Paying for damage will surely put us in jeopardy of losing everything-!"

"Just use the money reserve we have!" Doc Scratch tapped his foot impatiently. "After all, that's what it's for!"

"THE ENTIRE RESERVE IS GONE!" Calliope screamed, eyes flaring white. A flame flared up around her and Doc Scratch quickly snapped his fingers. The flame went out and Calliope fell to to the ground.

Doc Scratch tsked. "Please render yourself in a more symbolic manner this instant." Calliope just glared, but stood up, brushing off her skirt and folding her hands once again. "Thank you. Now, I expect this place to be orderly when I come back. After all," He smiled. "We are truly good hosts."

As he left, Calliope groaned. "I hate it when he says that." She said aloud to no one in particular. She brushed herself off a bit more and decided to try and contact everyone via messages called MeMos. Which was short for My e-Message order, by the way.

uranianUmbra [uu] opened up MeMo: Portal Emergency GroUp

uu: Hello everyone! This is Calliope, one of the Space GUardians. Can anyone assist me in the reconstrUction of the station possibly? Our manager would like it to be done soon.

gardenGnostic [GG] opened up MeMo: Portal Emergency GroUp

GG: oh my god Doc Scratch wants us to do it now? :(

uu: It woUld seem that way, yes.

GG: ugh! okay ill help

GG: i will be on my asdfghjklasdfghjklasdfghjkl

gardenGnostic [GG] has fallen asleep.

uu: Oh well.

carcinoGeneticist [CG] has opened up MeMo: Portal Emergency GroUp

CG: HELLO FUCKASSES CAN SOMEONE GET THIS HUMAN GIRL OFF MY LAP

CG: SHE KINDA JUST FELL HERE

CG: I THINK SHE'S ASLEEP

uu: She has a condition commonly known as narcolepsy.

CG: WHAT THE FUCK IS NARCO- NARCOLE- YOU KNOW WHAT, FUCK IT. WHAT IS WHATEVER YOU JUST SAID.

uu: It is the UnfortUnate problem of falling asleep at the most Unexpected times.

CG: THAT'S GREAT.

CG: I'M JUST GONNA PLACE HER ON MY BED AND HOPE SHE WAKES UP SOON.

CG: I NEED TO SLEEP THERE LATER.

CG: OH GOG I HOPE EQUIUS DOESN'T SHOW UP SOON.

centaursTesticle [CT] opened up MeMo: Portal Emergency GroUp

CT: D → Karkat there appears to be a human girl in our tent.

CG: WELL FUCK

CG: I WAS HOPING YOU WOULDN'T NOTICE FOR A BIT

CG: SHE'S ASLEEP, DON'T BOTHER HER

CT: D → May I ask why?

CG: NO

carcinoGeneticist [CG] ceased responding to MeMo: Portal Emergency GroUp

uu: Well then EqUiUs are yoU available to help me rebUild the broken portal station? It needs to be done soon.

CT: D → I am afraid that if I help, I shall break it even more.

CT: D → You see, I am very STRONG.

uu: … Okay then.

centaursTesticle [CT] ceased responding to MeMo: Portal Emergency GroUp

Well it looked like Calliope wouldn't get much help. She sighed and decided to continue on anyways.

**Note: ((Hey guys who do you think should help Calliope? Jade is asleep, John, Dave and Tavros are at the store, and Equius can't help.))**


End file.
